Schoolboy strikes at Pak army centre, 31 killed12-yr-old bomber in school uniform blows himself up
in the midst
Peshawar, February 10
In one of the deadliest strikes on the Pakistan army, a schoolboy suicide bomber sneaked into a heavily guarded Pakistani army training centre in the country’s northwest today.Ambulances enter the Punjab Regiment Centre where the suicide bomber blew himself up in Mardan, 30 km from Peshawar, on Thursday. — AFP

Pakistan test-fires N-capable missile
Pakistan on Thursday test-fired nuclear-capable Hatf-7 cruise missile with a range of 600 km that can hit targets in India. The test of the indigenously developed missile was “part of a process of validating the system,” said a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations. The statement did not say where the test was conducted.

US puts LeT under watch
Washington, February 10
Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is increasing its operational role, a top US official has warned saying Washington is now "focused" on the militant outfit behind the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Egypt Unrest: Day 17
Govt warns of army intervention
Cairo, February 10
Emboldened by workers’ strike across Egypt, thousands of pro-democracy protesters today carried out massive rallies against President Hosni Mubarak as they vowed to step up their 17-day revolt despite the government’s warning that army could “intervene to control the country.”

Khanal appoints 3 ministers amid row with Maoists
Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal on Thursday inducted three ministers from his communist party even as he failed to finalise a power sharing deal with his main ally Maoists, more than a week after he was elected as Nepal's new leader.

Insider dishes out dirt on Assange
Berlin, February 10
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is set on the sharp end of some unwelcome exposures himself today as a former ally spills the beans on the controversial Australian and his whistle-blowing
organisation. “Inside WikiLeaks” is billed as a warts-and-all account of Daniel
Domscheit-Berg’s time as chief programmer and media spokesman for what his tell-all book calls “the world’s most dangerous website.”

Peshawar, February 10
In one of the deadliest strikes on the Pakistan army, a schoolboy suicide bomber sneaked into a heavily guarded Pakistani army training centre in the country’s northwest today and blew himself up in the midst of a parade, killing 31 soldiers and leaving 40 more wounded.

“It was a suicide attack by a 12-year-old bomber in school uniform,” top police officer Abdullah Khan said on the early morning attack on the army’s elite Punjab Regimental Centre at Mardan, 60 km northeast of Peshawar.

Thirty-one army personnel were killed and 40 others injured, most of them critically in the powerful blast at 0815 am. An army spokesman confirmed the incident.

The police said the condition of some of the injured was critical and the toll could go up. The responsibility for the hit was claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban, who threatened to carry out even “bigger strike” to avenge US drone strike and military operation in the region.

The hit on the Punjab Regimental Centre was one of the worst strikes on the Pakistan army deeply involved for last two years in operations in the restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa province bordering Afghanistan to flush out Taliban militants.

Khan said the schoolboy managed to sneak into the sprawling heavily-guarded compound carrying a lethal payload apparently in his school bag and triggered the explosion as the troops were readying for the daily parade.

Television quoted witnesses as saying that the blast was so powerful that it blew soldiers away from the ground.

The bomber was able to sneak into the centre as he was wearing uniform of school located bang opposite the army facility.

Superintendent of Police Sirajul Hasan said the boy was carrying 9 kg of explosives and the legs and body parts of the teenage bomber had been found.

But there was conflicting reports about the identity of the bombers. While police and military officials said the strike was carried out by a schoolboy, the Taliban claimed that it was the handiwork of a soldier, who had turned over.

It was not immediately clear how the bomber got into the heavily guarded centre undetected. An attack on the same facility in 2006 had killed 35 soldiers.

Troops sealed off the area and even policemen had a difficult time getting through. The local army hospital declared an emergency as ambulances rushed in casualties.

Some of the critically injured army personnel were flown to military hospitals in Peshawar and Rawalpindi The forces have taken charge of rescue operations and civilian rescue agencies and media were not allowed entry into the heavily protected military facility.

Mardan is 50 kilometres away from the Mohmand tribal district where the army recently launched a major attack.

Officials have said more than 25,000 people have fled the area in the past one week.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani condemned the attack. They said “such cowardly attacks cannot affect the morale of the security agencies and the resolve of the nation to eradicate terrorism.” —
PTI

Pakistan on Thursday test-fired nuclear-capable Hatf-7 cruise missile with a range of 600 km that can hit targets in India. The test of the indigenously developed missile was “part of a process of validating the system,” said a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations. The statement did not say where the test was conducted.

The successful test of Hatf-7 or Babur cruise missile was witnessed by Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman Gen Khalid Shamim Wynne, who said the launch would “go a long way in consolidating Pakistan’s strategic deterrence capability and further strengthening national security.” “Pakistan’s resolve and commitment to continue its strategic programme will remain paramount,” he said.

The test was “warmly appreciated by the President and Prime Minister,” who congratulated the scientists and engineers on their success, the statement said.

The Babur can carry strategic or conventional warheads and has stealth capabilities, the statement said.

Washington, February 10
Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is increasing its operational role, a top US official has warned saying Washington is now "focused" on the militant outfit behind the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

The group, which has trained individuals involved in terror attacks, could pose a threat to the US and Europe, Michael Leiter, Director of National Counter terrorism Centre, told the Congress in a deposition.

Though LeT had so far not carried out attacks in the West, it could pose a threat to the US and Europe, in addition to destabilising South Asia more broadly, the official told the Congress.

In his testimony, he said LeT's previous attacks in Kashmir and India have had a destabilising effect on the region, increasing tension and brinkmanship between New Delhi and Islamabad.

Report: Pak starts construction of 4th N-reactor

Pakistan has started construction of its fourth nuclear reactor at Khushab in Punjab province, signalling its ambitious effort to modernise and expand the nuclear arsenal.

The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) said the latest satellite imageries obtained by it shows that the reactor building is relatively early in its construction, but the footprint is that it is nearly of the same size as that of the second and third Khushab reactors.

The US and other reports had indicated that China and Pakistan had recently concluded an agreement under which Beijing would construct the fourth reactor at Khushab.

“A new construction staging and storage area can be seen south of the new construction,” said a report authored by David Albright and Paul Brannan. — PTI

Egyptian doctors and medical students join the anti-government demonstration
at Tahrir Square in Cairo on Thursday. — AFP

Cairo, February 10
Emboldened by workers’ strike across Egypt, thousands of pro-democracy protesters today carried out massive rallies against President Hosni Mubarak as they vowed to step up their 17-day revolt despite the government’s warning that army could “intervene to control the country.”

Egyptian labour unions went on a nationwide strike for the second consecutive day, giving a new dimension to the demonstrations in Cairo and other cities against the embattled President’s 30-year autocratic regime.

Lawyers, public transport workers and the artists syndicate were among those who joined the strike, Al Jazeera reported.

Thousands of protesters, who have been staging sit-ins on the Tahrir (Liberation) Square, the hub of the anti-government demonstrations in the heart of Cairo, refused to bow to the military pressure to “go home” and took out rallies against 82-year-old Mubarak as their movement entered the 17th day.

Several hundred protesters had yesterday attempted to block the entrance to the Parliament building, blocks away from the Tahrir Square, but were stopped by heavily-armed soldiers.

In a desperate attempt to end the revolt, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit warned that the army would intervene if the protests escalated.

“If chaos occurs, the armed forces will intervene to control the country, a step... which would lead to a very dangerous situation,” the official MENA news agency said quoting Abul Gheit as telling the Arabic-language Al-Arabiya channel.

But protesters, undeterred by the warning, chanted slogans against Mubarak and Vice President Omar Suleiman.

“No to Suleiman. No to American agents. No to Israeli spies. Long live Egypt. Down with Hosni Mubarak,” they said while taking out a march outside Parliament building.

Suleiman had yesterday warned that if the protesters do not enter negotiations, a “coup” could take place, causing greater chaos in the country. — PTI

Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal on Thursday inducted three ministers from his communist party even as he failed to finalise a power sharing deal with his main ally Maoists, more than a week after he was elected as Nepal's new leader.

Khanal administered the oath of office and secrecy to CPN-UML leaders - Bharat Mohan Adhikari, Bishnu Poudyal and Gangalal Tuladhar - after several rounds of discussion with UCPN-Maoist which ended inconclusively, party sources said.

But Maoist leaders were not present at the President's Office where Prime Minister Khanal was administering the oath of office and secrecy to the newly appointed ministers.

Adhikari was appointed the Deputy Prime Minister while Poudyal and Tuladhar are yet to be allocated portfolios. Tuladhar has been named the government spokesman.

Khanal was elected as the new prime minister by the Constituent Assembly after 17 rounds of election. However, the two main allies, CPN-UML and the Maoists, have failed to arrive at an understanding over the distribution of portfolios.

UCPN-Maoist, the largest party in the House is demanding important portfolios, including the home ministry. The Maoists decided not to join the cabinet today as their demand for the important home ministry portfolio was not yet fulfilled. "We will not join the cabinet today as our demands are not fulfilled," said Maoist spokesman Dinanath Sharma. The negotiations between the Maoists and the CPN-UML will continue after the formation of a mini-cabinet, he added.

"As the CPN-UML did not clarify its stance on seven-point agreement reached between the its chairman Khanal and Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal on February 3, we decided not to join the government," Maoists vice-chairman Narayankaji Shrestha told journalists after meeting with the PM Khanal. The Maoists and the CPN-UML are blaming each other for the delay caused in the cabinet formation and sources said Khanal's party is unwilling to give the Home and Defence portfolios to the former rebels.

Berlin, February 10
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is set on the sharp end of some unwelcome exposures himself today as a former ally spills the beans on the controversial Australian and his whistle-blowing organisation. “Inside WikiLeaks” is billed as a warts-and-all account of Daniel Domscheit-Berg’s time as chief programmer and media spokesman for what his tell-all book calls “the world’s most dangerous website.”

Set for release in 16 countries from tomorrow, it says that “chaotic” WikiLeaks cannot protect its sources and accuses the “power-obsessed” Assange of being uneconomical with the truth, according to leaked excerpts.
— AFP

WikiLeaks to sue Daniel over tell-all book

London: WikiLeaks on Thursday said it was taking legal action against a former employee who wrote a tell-all book about the website’s founder Julian Assange, questioning the ex-ally’s “integrity and stability.” The threat came as Daniel Domscheit-Berg held a press conference in Berlin on the eve of the release of “Inside WikiLeaks”, a warts-and-all account of his time as chief programmer and media spokesman for the whistle-blowing site. Domscheit-Berg and others left the website in September.

Six dead in Ireland plane crash
Dublin: At least six persons were killed when a small commuter aircraft carrying 12 persons crashed on Thursday while trying to land in heavy fog at Cork Airport in southwest Ireland, overturning and catching fire on the runway, Irish authorities said. Cork County Council, which oversees emergency services, said six persons were killed and six others injured. It said two passengers had to be cut from the wreckage, and all six survivors, among them passengers with severe burns, were at Cork University Hospital. — AP

Prince Charles (right) meets members of the pop group Steps after their performance in aid of The Princes Trust in London on Wednesday. — AP/PTI

NRI author wins children’s book prize
London: An NRI woman writer has won the prestigious 5,000-pound Waterstones Children's Book Prize for a story that dealt with the death of a grandparent. Sita Brahmachari won the Prize for 'Artichoke Hearts', the story of a girl's relationship with her ailing grandmother. The judges praised the book for "tackling the issue of death head-on" and for its positive portrayal of the relationship between grandparents and grandchildren. It is the debut children's novel from Brahmachari, a mother-of-three from north London.
— PTI

Testosterone ‘interferes with empathy’
London: Scientists have discovered that male sex hormone testosterone influences the ability to empathise with others, a finding which they say could lead to new drugs and treatments for conditions like autism. A team of British and Dutch scientists, who gave women a small dose of testosterone, found that it makes them less able to empathise with others. The researchers said their findings add weight to the theory that the hormone is significant in the development of autism and could lead to new treatments for the condition, the BBC reported. — PTI